Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor by Lonnie Donegan

Jane Minogue

11 months ago

When Dinosaurs walked the earth, mammals were hiding in the background awaiting their turn. When we were doo wopping, the British were here, waiting for their turn. The Beatles grew out of a tradition called “skiffle,” which was a combination of American rock and British music-hall. Donegan, who was born Anthony James Donegan in Bridgeton, Glasgow, Scotland, had 24 U.K. Top 30 hits; he was known as “The King of Skiffle.” Donegan sang and played the guitar and banjo. He combined rock, blues, swing jazz, country, and folk music. Among Donegan’s many hits are “Rock Island Line,” “Cumberland Gap,” “Gamblin” Man,” “Battle of New Orleans,” and ” My Old Man’s a Dustman.” One of many skiffle groups that followed Donegan was John Lennon’s The Quarrymen, which formed in 1957.

The song “Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor” peaked at #3 in the U.K. Singles Chart in 1959 and was Donegan’s biggest hit in the U.S. at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961. The song a revised cover of an old song “Does the Spearmint Lose Its Flavor on the Bedpost Overnight?” The words had to be changed because the BBC did not allow registered trademark names to be mentioned on the air. The lineup for Donegan’s band was a flexible one over the years.

Here are the lyrics to “Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor” by Lonnie Donegan and his Skiffle Group:

Oh me oh my oh you
Whatever shall I do?
Hallelujah,
The question is peculiar
I’d give a lot of dough
If only I could know
The answer to my question
Is it yes or is it no?

Does your chewing gum lose its flavor
on the bedpost overnight?
If your mother says don’t chew it,
Do you swallow it in spite?
Can you catch it on your tonsils,
Can you heave it left & right?
Does your chewing gum lose its flavor
on the bedpost overnight?

Here comes a blushing bride
The groom is by her side
Up to the altar,
Just as steady as Gibraltar
The groom has got the ring
And it’s such a pretty thing
But as he slips it on her finger
The choir begins to sing:

Does your chewing gum lose its flavor
on the bedpost overnight?
If your mother says don’t chew it,
Do you swallow it in spite?
Can you catch it on your tonsils,
Can you heave it left & right?
Does your chewing gum lose its flavor
on the bedpost overnight?

Now the nation rise as one
To send their wanted son
Up to the White House, yes,
The nation’s only White House
To voice their discontent
Unto the Pres-I-dent
The bonny burning question,
What has swept this continent?
If tin whistles are made of tin,
What do they make fog horns out of?
Boom boom

Does your chewing gum lose its flavor
On the bedpost overnight?
If your mother says don’t chew it,
Do you swallow it in spite?
Can you catch it on your tonsils,
Can you heave it left & right?
Does your chewing gum lose its flavor
On the bedpost overnight?

On the bedpost overnight
Hello there,
I love you and
The one who holds you tight!
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday, Friday, Sat’day night
On the bedpost overnight
A dollar is a dollar & a dime is a dime!
He’d sing another chorus
But he hasn’t got the time
On the bedpost overnight, yeah!

For More Golden Oldies Music

The Daily Doo Wop Rec Room has daily featured doo wop, rock and roll, R&B, or rockabilly songs that were hits during the first era of rock and roll (that is, from about 1952 until the British invasion in 1964). After a song is featured, it then goes into the juke box. You are welcome to listen to any of the 40+ selections there. Every weekend, there is a Golden Oldies Juke Box Saturday Night, and the juke box is full of song requests from the 1950s and 1960s.